Summary

This film, like Nair’s earlier films (Salaam Bombay!, Mississippi Masala) presents serious social issues for viewers to consider, but the story this time, is set in a happier context. As the title reveals, a wedding is central. Monsoon is added to account for two kinds of turbulence: the weather on the day of the wedding and discomforting family factors such as pedophilia, secret trysts, and class distinctions. For the Punjabi Verma family, it is Father of the Bride with the universal tension, stress, and chaos associated with such happy events, but also with distressing twists that are sorted out or washed away symbolically by the monsoon’s arrival.

Commentary

The film helps to forge cultural connections between events and problems in distant lands and in our own backyards. Difficult problems are approached honestly by characters who live in a time of change and transition, in a time when old and new values frequently come into conflict.

Miscellaneous

Written by Sabrina Dhawan. In English with subtitles. The film earned the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival.